Greek Baked Eggplant
I came up with this recipe on a dark winter’s night of fridge shaking as the solution of what to do with eggplants a wee bit past their prime. It works because the skins get deliciously chewy in the oven, the tomato sauce intensifies and the feta brings a salty accent that is more Greek than Provençal or Neapolitan. Serves 6 Prep 15 mins Cooking 1 hour 5 mins
3 eggplants
(about 400g each) 80ml (1/3 cup) olive oil, plus
extra for greasing 1 onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 2 tsp Greek or regular dried oregano
700g bottle passata
400g can chickpeas, rinsed
and drained sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper
150g Greek feta, crumbled
into large pieces black olive tapenade and
oregano leaves, to serve
Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Generously grease a large roasting tin.
Halve the eggplants lengthways and score a 1cm-wide border around the edge of each half. Score within the border in a criss-cross pattern, then scoop out the flesh and roughly chop it.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium–high heat, add the onion and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until softened. Add the remaining oil and the chopped eggplant flesh and cook, stirring, for 8–10 minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and dried oregano and cook for 30 seconds or until aromatic.
Pour the passata into the pan, along with the chickpeas and cook, stirring, for 20 minutes or until the mixture has reduced and thickened and pulls away from the side of the pan. You want it to be nice and pulpy. Season well with salt and pepper.
While the sauce is cooking, place the eggplant shells cut-side down in the prepared tin, cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes or until slightly softened.
Turn the eggplant shells over and fill with the tomato mixture. Sprinkle over the feta and bake for a further 30 minutes or until the eggplant is tender and the tops are golden. Finish with dollops of olive tapenade and sprinkle with fresh oregano leaves.
Meaty addition Serve with slow-roasted lamb shoulder as part of a shared meal.